Household Energy Bills

We believe that the best way to protect households permanently is through our mission to deliver clean power by 2030. Combined with our warm homes plan to upgrade millions of homes across the country so that they are warmer and cheaper to run, that will drive down energy bills and make cold homes a thing of the past. We know that we need to support people while we make that transition, which is why we are extending the warm home discount.

Almost 10% of people in my North East Hampshire constituency live in fuel poverty. I agree with the Minister that investing in renewable energy would help to tackle that, so how is she working with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government to empower local authorities to develop renewable energy generation locally—by following Europe’s lead in putting solar over car parks, for example—in order to make energy cheaper and more sustainable?

The hon. Member is right: there is a big push to work with local and regional authorities to ensure not only that we generate renewables that can impact on bills, but that we upgrade homes. Through local energy action plans, local authorities are, for the first time, working with the National Energy System Operator and other systems operators to drive that. Local and regional authorities have a crucial role to play in upgrading millions of homes across the country.

My Heywood and Middleton North constituents live in a state of profound uncertainty as to how the unpredictability of global energy markets will affect their families. Does the Minister agree that if we want to protect those families from volatility, we must end our reliance on global fossil fuel markets, and introduce targeted interventions to bring bills down, particularly for those on the lowest incomes?

My hon. Friend is right. It beggars belief that the Conservative party is so stuck in its ideological opposition to moving towards clean power. We are clear that we must break our dependence on global fossil fuel markets, which led to record energy bills during the energy crisis. We are making that sprint, but it is critical that we support the most vulnerable households while we make that transition, which is why I am so proud that this Government extended the warm home discount so that an extra 2.7 million households—one in five—will benefit this winter.

I congratulate Ministers again on embracing the principles of the sunshine Bill campaign, run by me and many others to ensure that solar panels are included on the roofs of all new houses. In the heat of recent weeks, people in my constituency have been sweltering in beautiful old regency buildings, which pose a particular challenge in this respect. Do Ministers agree that if we line up heat pump technology and solar panels, we can lower our energy bills and keep cool at the same time?

The hon. Member is right. We believe in a solar panel revolution. That is one of the key things that Great British Energy will bring about across the country. On overheating, it will be critical to ensure that as we upgrade homes, we make them fit for purpose in the context of climate change. We are including air-to-air heat pumps in the boiler upgrade scheme, and we will consider other measures to keep homes cool.

The Government have taken long-overdue steps to secure rooftop solar on new builds, but there is even greater untapped potential on existing commercial and domestic rooftops. Will Ministers consider introducing a scheme, similar to those in other countries, offering free installation of rooftop solar for businesses and residents? The costs could be paid back through a long-term power-purchasing agreement. That would simultaneously increase the supply of clean energy and cut bills.

My hon. Friend is right to talk about the potential of solar on our commercial buildings. We know that solar can reduce energy bills by about £600. We are looking at all the options, because we are absolutely serious about a solar rooftop revolution, whether on our homes or commercial buildings.

I call the Liberal Democrat spokesperson.

We welcomed the joint agreement signed in May between the UK and the EU, in which small steps were taken to address the impacts of the Conservatives’ botched Brexit deal on energy costs and bills. What further steps will the Secretary of State take to forge energy co-operation through a recoupling of the UK and EU electricity markets and the UK’s participation in the EU’s internal electricity market, to boost trade, bring down renewable energy costs and reduce energy bills?

We have been listening to industry voices, and they are very clear about the opportunities for stronger alignment. We will continue to engage with them, and with our partners in the EU on the opportunities as we make the sprint to clean power.